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#JusticeForAwra: Why is a trans woman arrested for defending her friends from harassers?

June 29, 2023 0

Awra Briguela’s arrest is just a glimpse of how transphobic authorities, like the police, can be.

This 19-year-old trans woman’s mugshot is posted all over social media and plastered on the news while the men who allegedly harassed her friends get aliases.

ICYMI, the Ang Probinsiyano actress was nabbed by police on June 29 for physical injuries, alarm and scandal, direct assault, and disobedience to a person in authority. This was after Awra took part in a brawl outside a bar in Poblacion, Makati.

According to the police report, one of the complainants, Mark Christian Ravana, went outside the bar with Awra then she “violently” tore his shirt. Police later intervened, with the Southern Police District claiming the actress became abusive toward the officers. In videos shared online, the 19-year-old appeared to be manhandled by cops as they handcuffed her.

As videos of the incident became viral online, Awra’s friends took to social media to give their sides of the story. Instagram user @simpforzayla told about how a man harassed her and her friend Mary Joy while she, Awra, and the rest of their friends were in the bar.

“My dear friend Awra confronted the guy very calmly after the party to defend me and our friend… Awra and this creepy guy got heated up and that’s where the trouble began,” she wrote in an Instagram story.

Social media influencer Riva Quenery also shared her side on Twitter, claiming the other guy threw the first punch.

She also questioned why Awra was the only one arrested, and why weren’t the men who were also part of the fight also apprehended. This sentiment has also been in netizens’ minds after the incident, with some users calling the police transphobic.

“People, usually men, accuse trans women of being threats to cis women. Yet, when trans women protect their cis women sisters from harassers (who are men), trans women end up getting all the punches and blows—leaving those abusive men free from harm attempting to reverse the narrative to make them the victims,” Miss Trans Global 2020 Mela Habijan wrote on Twitter.

Standing up against sexual harassment

Here’s a hot take, because while violence is and should never be the answer, Awra did nothing wrong. Taking into account what her friends said about what happened, wouldn’t anyone defend their friends, too, from harassers who try to grope them while they’re out having fun?

Most people would even be afraid to confront predators in public, especially inebriated ones, but Awra did. She protected her female friends from these men. The harassers weren’t even named in the news, but users on social media have been demanding for them to be called out.

It’s so hard to report sexual assault—a majority of cases of sexual harassment go unreported, and of course, there are many other factors. So it’s understandable why Awra took matters into her own hands.

As for the police, they are supposed to serve and protect people. However, as many netizens noted, they showed aggression and prejudice against a 19-year-old trans woman. Did the incident even merit the use of excessive force? Let’s not forget Makati police’s “Oplan X-men,” wherein trans women are profiled and “invited” to their headquarters. Are trans women today still profiled in the city? If that’s the case (and it seems like it is), the Makati City local government must impose an anti-discrimination ordinance since there isn’t even a SOGIESC Equality law yet.

Like other netizens, we call for #JusticeForAwra and condemn transphobia and sexual assault.

Read more: The LGBTQ+ community isn’t asking for special rights, just equal ones

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The post <b>#JusticeForAwra: Why is a trans woman arrested for defending her friends from harassers?</b> appeared first on WE THE PVBLIC.


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